Pet Names · Dog Names
By Pamela Redmond · Updated September 2026
Across 18 pages
of 18
English
"fame; gossip, story"
Celebs Demi Moore and Bruce Willis made waves in the 80s when they named their now-grown daughter after novelist Rumer Godden. The author was actually born Margaret, with family surname Rumer as her…
"stag"
Most often spelled without the final "e"--unless you're a particular fan of writer Bret.
Greek
"most beautiful"
Calista Flockhart may have made her variation of this beautiful Greek name familiar to modern Americans, but the even-edgier x version was the name of an earlier feminist heroine: a character in Kate…
"dark stone"
A two-syllable surname feel puts this name of an important English saint in the running -- though it could sound like a confused cross between Duncan and Dustin.
Armenian literary name
Plausible literary name to honor upbeat Armenian-American playwright and prose writer William Saroyan.
Invented name, variation of Juna, English from Latin
"born in June; young; moon"
Novelist Djuna Barnes introduced this interesting and unusual name with an arty, Bohemian feel to the mix. She explained that it was invented by her father, saying it came about as a combination of…
Latin
"the seventh son"
Septimus is one of the more dashing of the birth-order Latin number names that were revived by the Victorians. So even if you don't anticipate son number 7, you might be bold enough to consider this…
"ill-starred"
Desdemona is as Shakespearean as a name can be, but because the beautiful and innocent wife of Othello came to such a tragic end, her name has been avoided for centuries. But at this point in time,…
Egyptian mythological name or variation of Seth, Hebrew
"appointed, placed"
Author Toni Morrison is an acknowledged master of naming, and Sethe, the name of one of the main characters of Beloved , which can be pronounced as Seth or Seth-eh, relates to the male biblical name…
"brandish spear"
This name will forever be associated with the Bard and would likely prove hard to live up to. It might be cool for a pet though.
Hebrew, short variation of Bathsheba
"daughter of an oath"
This biblical place-name for the region now known as Yemen started to feel fresh again as the name of the heroine of Zoe Heller's Notes on a Scandal , played on screen by Cate Blanchett. Sheba is…
Literary name
Sidda is a name made famous by the heroine of The Ya-Ya Sisterhood; it probably started life as a nickname.
Hebrew, variation of Aphrah
"dust"
Aphra would make an interesting choice-- especially since it's the name of the first professional female writer in English, the seventeenth century's Aphra Behn. Born in 1640, she was a prolific…
English word name
Snow is increasing in usage mostly as a girls' name, but hero Jon Snow of Game of Thrones just might nudge it into the boys' column. Currently, there are 12 times as many girls named Snow as boys,…
